.:weekend in the smokies:.

friday [after my mini meltdown] brad and i headed to tennessee for a weekend with friends. after we made it through the ridiculous traffic we checked our cabin. it had been raining for most of the day but it gave us the opportunity to see the 'smoke' over the mountains. beautiful.

when shannon and chris arrived we went to dinner at the smokey mountain brewery. the food was just alright but the beer was great.

saturday we got up and headed to cade's cove, where we were able to spot several white tailed deer and turkey. after lunch we hiked up to grotto falls. it was a great hike and we also saw a black bear on the way up.

it was a great weekend, and it was so good to see shannon and chris. even if i saw shann every weekend it wouldn't be enough! we lived together for 4 years and i forgot how much i missed just being in the same house as her. i'm blessed to have her as friend.

thank you all for your sweet comments and encouragement about my last post. i hadn't heard of post marathon blues but i'd say i've got all the symptoms! it's nice to know i'm not the only one who's ever been through it, and hopefully i'll get back to my 'normal' soon!

soooo...

so... i don't even know what to say about life lately. i'd be lying if i wrote that i don't try to keep things mostly rainbows and sunshine on the blog. not because i'm trying to act like my life is so much better than yours [come see me, any illusion of that will be gone in 0.002 seconds], but because i figure no one wants to read the crap of everyday life. my friend, suz, did some really great posts last week about being authentic last week, and i figured what the heck.

i've been in a weird place since the marathon. at times i wonder if i made a mistake in running it. i sacrificed weight training to train for this marathon and i also let my eating get a little out of control. so while i can all myself a marathoner, i'm up 10 pounds on the scale, i've been dead tired, and i've done something to mess up my back. not great.

i don't like to complain. i know there are so many people dealing with things that are so much worse than anything i'm dealing with. i also know that i serve an amazing God who has a unique plan for me, so i try not to worry. but sometimes i just fail miserably. right now i'm feeling a little overwhelmed and hopefully i'll get to a better place soon.

brad and i spent the weekend in gatlinburg with my best friend and her husband. it was such a great time. i've been looking forward to it ever since we planned it. yet, on friday as we were packing to go, i was having a borderline panic attack because our house is a wreck. crazy.

what do you do when you feel overwhelmed?

have you ever regretted doing something that most people consider a huge accomplishment?

review:::: the ultimate beginner's running guide: the key to running inspired

a few months ago i was contacted by ryan robert to see if i wanted to review his new running book, the ultimate beginner's running guide: the key to running inspired. i love to read and i love running so of course i was happy to oblige.

ryan sent me an electronic copy for my kindle [and after he very patiently walked me through the process of uploading it from email to kindle]. i started reading the book during the peak of my marathon training, so it was slow going.

as you can guess from the title, this is definitely for BEGINNER runners. i had read most of the information previously [between kara goucher's running for women, many, many issues of runner's world, and running blogs], but it was nice to have the information all in one place. i think if you were brand new to the sport, this would be a great place to get started, but even if you've been at it awhile, it's a great resource.

it was great to review how to dress for the elements... because i needed all the help i could get at our arctic marathon!

my favorite part of the book was when ryan talked about body image, motivation, inspiration, and being self conscious. when i started running i was SO self conscious, heck, i still am sometimes. i thought he did an excellent job with this topic, and it would be particularly helpful to all runners.

there are also some really great training plans in the back of the book, which ryan explains so they aren't overwhelming.

if you're a beginner, this is a great place to start. if you have a kindle, you can get the book for $1.99 here!

disclaimer::: i was approached by author to review this book. i was given an electronic copy at no charge, but i was not required to give a positive review. all opinions expressed are my own. 

review mirror:::: march 2013

.:running:.

as i sit down to write this post, i almost skipped this portion because i feel like i've done so little running lately. then it hits me, you ran your first full marathon this month you dummy! but lately, UGH. i've lost my running mojo so failure is the primary thought that comes to mind when i think of running. 

anyways, three races this month: the asheville marathon, the oskar blues 4 miler, and the spartan race. other than the marathon, i can't say i trained or prepared for these races. i did a few short trail runs and a couple of even shorter treadmill runs. i've even quit tracking them on daily mile because they're so few and far between. 

but hopefully i'll get straightened out in april. if not the flying pig three way [5k, 10k, and 13.1] and the 30k trail race that i've signed up for in may will be MISERY. 

.:weight training:.
i really should skip this portion! as much as i idealized getting back to my weight training routine after the marathon... eh, not so much. partly because i've been lazy, partly because i've done something to my back [getting older is fun!]. 

.:reading:.
i finished a bunch of books this month:

three cups of tea was my favorite, i'd been meaning to read it for awhile when i stumbled upon in at the library. 

i'll have a full review of the ultimate beginners guide to running because the author, ryan robert, graciously gave me a free copy to read. spoiler alert: it's really good and i was even able put some of the tips to use for the marathon!

.:2013 goals:.
full marathon finished. 

30 minutes of computer time may have been a little unrealistic. i am doing this on days i work and i've also decided that i shouldn't get online until i've completed my daily Bible study. this seems to be working great for me, so i'll probably modify this goal at some point.

.:life:.
march was full of highs and lows. i was so grateful to spend time with matthew when he visited for the spartan race, and my parents visited on easter weekend. mom basically put me in time out on the couch because she was worried about my back and proceeded to cook us an amazing easter dinner. i felt bad, but it was so good and so greatly appreciated! for some reason her food just tastes better! :)

on easter day my sweet aunt sherri passed away. i am heartbroken for those of us she left behind, but i know that she is with Jesus and that her pain is gone. when i feel sad about her being gone i feel like i'm being selfish, but i suppose it's a natural part of grief. i miss her sweet smile and her unwavering heart. she always had a special way of making you feel like the most important person in the world when you were with her. please pray for her family [husband, two daughters, two grandchildren and a third on the way] and my momma, they were so close. 

when she and momma were helping me to pick out my wedding dress. 

mom, sherri, and their friend donna dancing at my wedding.